Love after Death
by tempest13c
Summary: Is there something beyond Death? Is it coldness of Nothing, or maybe something else? Harry Potter, who mastered the Deathly Hallows, will be forced to find out on his own if there is something more. But thanks to being the Master of Death - his answer may differ from the others that took the same journey. Slytherin!Harry, MoD!Harry, Harry/Fem!Harry


Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. HP is the property of J. K. Rowling and is not my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this nor will any be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.

A/N: Yes I know I didn't update VA in quite some time, but I will do so soon … But I had to write this new one … Why? … because I couldn't take it out of my head. Damn the plot bunnies.

ENJOY.

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Warning!

INCEST! (sort of)

MoD!Harry

Slytherin!Harry

Harry/Fem!Harry

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§Testing§ - parseltongue

"Testing" - talking

'Testing' - inner voice

 _Testing_ \- spells/letters

oOo - change of POV

xXx - scene break

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1\. The Last Enemy.

Harry Potter stood in front of his nemesis (a certain Dark Lord named Tom) and frantically tried to think of a method or a strategy to finally kill that human equivalent of a cockroach.

And preferably live through it.

'OK … maybe calling that _thing_ human is stretching it a bit.' Harry thought dryly while dodging the first spell of what he knew was the final duel between the two.

The-Boy-Who-Lived ( _Twice_ ) cast a quick nonverbal spell chain at Voldemort ( _Stupefy_ _Horribilis_ , _Bombarda Maxima,_ _Confringo_ ) that sufficiently distracted him, he then whispered _Caligo_ with a sweeping wand motion and disappeared into a mist that descended on the Great Hall in Hogwarts. With that as a cower, he quickly donned his Invisibility Cloak and changed his position while casting two more _Confringo's_ at last known location of his opponent.

'I am _soooooo_ dead.' Harry thought with morbid amusement as he took cower behind the Gryffindor table. 'Not even a _fucking_ Elder Wand will help me against fifty- _ish_ years of experience!'

And he was so close too … if not for dear old Bella, that thrown herself in front of his Killing Curse he cast at the bastards back after rising from the dead, the Dark Lord would be a cooling body in the Forbidden Forest by now.

But, unfortunately, Potter luck had to strike again.

In the struggle that followed he managed to liberate the Elder Wand from hands of shocked Voldemort after one of the Death Eaters caught him with _Expelliarmus,_ a feat made more satisfying by using muggle ways of disarming (fist in the face and grab the wand). Unfortunately, Dark Lord's entourage started casting at him immediately, so all he could do was running for his life to Hogwarts.

Which, after Voldy and his fuckboys finally entered the Great Hall, left Harry in the current situation. He was just glad that he managed to convince anyone present in the Hall at the time of his arrival to scram before his pursuers finally caught on. He knew that if he were alone, Tom would insist on a duel to lord (pun intended) over him that he was more powerful and experienced. Surprisingly he didn't start his usual monologue and taunting and just started casting.

'I guess he is still shocked that I woke up after taking AK to the face. That would also explain why he doesn't throw Killing Curses out like candy.' Harry reasoned internally as a violent wind dispersed the mist and showed scowling Voldemort. 'And to add to the insult, that arsehole is using _MY_ wand!'

The familiar wand in the Snake Face hand made him enraged, which sprung him into casting three AK's at him in seconds while running in the direction of the High Table. That proved to be a wise decision as, after dodging his curses with inhuman agility, Voldemort cast a powerful looking purple spell that utterly obliterated the Gryffindor table in a massive explosion. He managed to be far enough to not die, but he still got thrown in the air due to the blast. Thankfully his head managed to miss the High Table, and he collided with the wall right behind the table at considerable speed.

His luck, unfortunately, ended there as his left arm that met the wall of stone gave up with a sickening crack. Landing in a heap on the floor with the grunt Harry knew that he was in trouble when he barely managed to roll to the side while evading javelin-like curse that made an _actual hole_ in the _freaking wall_.

Seeing that he was adequately covered by the table and that Voldy slowly stalked to the hole he made he chanced a look at his left arm by removing part of the cloak (that miraculously didn't fell off in the fight) from it.

He grimaced at the unnatural angle his arm was few inches above the elbow. Thanks to the adrenalin, his naturally high pain threshold and a Lesser Pain Dampening Blood Ritual the expected agony was reduced to manageable levels. He knew that his Lesser Regeneration and Lesser Healing Factor he possessed, thanks to the other Blood Rituals he did, would heal him within a day.

He doubted he would live to see another hour.

And yet … he couldn't bring himself to regret not going through the most potent rituals that would have enabled him to heal in seconds, just like he knew Voldemort did. He was all right with paying in blood, pain and even in lives of the Death Eaters.

Considering he used Greyback and Lestrange brothers lives to fuel his Strength, Stamina and Reflex Enhancing Blood Rituals - he was more than inclined to do so.

But what the Dark Lord had required multiple lives of _innocents_. He knew that often _newborn babies_ were used in such rituals, mostly they were needed to be magical.

It goes without saying that a lot of innocent lives were lost so Tommy could feel invincible.

He made a promise to himself a long time ago that he would never fail to such cheap methods after he learned of the price for such power. He was not a monster after all.

Harry pulled himself from the morbid thoughts as he eyed the ring on his left index finger. As he caught the sight of the stone on the said ring, a sudden idea struck him like lightning. As a grin spread slowly on his still hidden face, Harry quickly hid his arm under the cloak. Under it, he reached his left hand with his right, that still clutched the Deathstick and turned the ring three times.

"James Charles Potter." He intonated as quietly as he possibly could and followed as the figure of his father materialised with equally silent voice. "Distract Voldemort."

He swiftly cast _Silencio_ on his feet and darted around the High Table so he could catch him with a curse in the back. Thankfully he managed to duck the almost black spell that Voldy directed at the apparition of his father when he saw it appear.

"Hello you Dark Tosser, fancy seeing you here!" Harry heard his father's hollow yet jovial voice that made him scowl. "That said looking at your face doesn't really make me all that happy to be perfectly honest. I mean … seriously … what the hell happened to your nose? Someone stole it and never gave it back? …"

Harry tuned out the hollow voice of the "spirit" of his father and closed on quickly and silently to the position he chose at the other end of the table. He ignored Voldemort's triumphant yell knowing that he doesn't have much time and Dark Lord will soon realise that the "ghost" is not that of Harry Potter.

He couldn't stop the pang of disappointment at the thought of the apparition the stone provided. It was both more than he expected and less than he hoped.

More because the constructs actually had the memories of the person that was called – he made sure of it by asking questions only they would know, and he didn't … and then checking the truthfulness of the information. Before the testing, he was almost sure that the stone just provided what the user wanted, made from knowledge and memories of the wielder of the Hallow.

Less – because his assumption turned out to be partially correct. The stone pulled the information from _somewhere_ and then gave it the personality the user expected … wanted to see. The worst thing was that it was doing this with less than perfect results. The end product was something with the memories of a loved one and depth of personality that was worst than that of a painting … it almost physically hurt him to listen to his parent's hollow voices.

He pushed those thoughts aside as he arrived at the other end of a table. He was far enough to react to retaliation should he fail but also so close that even with Voldemort's reflexes he had a fair shot at killing him. Thankfully his target was blissfully unaware, predictably gloating, so he pointed the tip of the Elder Wand after slipping it from his cloak.

" _Avada Kedavra._ " With a soft hiss-like whisper, the emerald green curse fueled by his hatred of the _abomination_ in front of him and desire to utterly destroy it sored blindingly and struck his target - much to his glee.

Then he saw the curse going thru, as he now realised, an illusion just as it turned to him and grinned with malice.

His eyes widened with shock as he heard a familiar voice.

§Playtime over Harry. Time to DIE!§ Gleefull sing-song hiss, undeniably belonging to Voldemort, sounded near his left ear.

Before he could move even a single muscle, he felt a spell ripping his left side open just under the ribcage and sending him painfully into the wall to his right. The force of the curse spun him around, and he met the wall with his back sending waves of pain through his body. He then landed with a weak grunt on his left side earning him even more pain.

His Invisibility Cloak came apart slipping from his head and showing his torso, only covering his legs, right arm and his neck where it was held by a unique clasp that he enchanted with Hermione – when it was visible it looked like two small silver feathers crossing.

With a titanic effort, he managed to look down on his left side and in his shock wanted to gasp but only managed to eject a significant amount of blood on the floor in front of him.

From, his pelvis to about the middle of his abdomen was a massive gaping hole that showed his insides nicely and not only was it bleeding profusely he could actually see his guts (whats left of them at least) spilling on the floor. The spell damage area also nicked his left lung as he could see a bloody foam forming in the upper area of the wound where his ribcage started.

Harry immediately understood that he was dead, the only reason he was still coherent was thanks to the Rituals he put himself under. But even with them … two minutes of consciousness awaited him at most, death following soon after.

"I have to say, Harry … You were very difficult to kill … _Surprisingly_ difficult. But in the end, even the Hallows didn't help you against the might of the Dark Lord Voldemort!" The smug and strangely relaxed voice reached him, so he looked with a considerable effort at the Snake Face. He was startled to see him crouching few feet from him locking his blood red eyes with his fading emerald green. "I am also quite surprised that your wand is so well suited for me … it will serve me well in the millennia to come as my second … no … THIRD wand. Right after the Deathstic and my own. You see Harry …"

The last (and very dying) Potter tuned the monologing megalomaniac out (something about turning him into Inferius) and furiously gathered his sluggish thoughts.

'OK … I am going to die. That sucks major ass, but I cannot change it … so I have to take the Dark Tosser with me if I manage it. Thankfully he graciously provided me with an opportunity by coming closer and gloating as usual. Does that Idiot ever learn? Oh well … works for me at least.' Harry thought with humour, the last bit of which he could manage, trying to sweep away his dread and all-encompassing fear at the death that awaited him in moments.

He long time ago stopped believing in the Next Great Adventure, and the fiasco with the Ressurection Stone only solidified his suspicion that there simply is nothing in the beyond.

The only thing that made him let himself hit with the Voldemort's AK at the Forest was that he was reasonably sure that it will just get the last Horcrux out of him – without actually killing Harry. If he had time, he would research soul magic properly and find another way … Unfortunately, the information about his scar Horcrux reached him too late for that.

In that one aspect, he was very similar to Tom – he feared death, he was terrified of it. He wanted to live as long as he could. But Harry was not willing to sacrifice everything that he held dear, his principles … his humanity just to drive death away. Flamels proved that there was a solution without the sacrifice. It was one of the reasons he started to learn Alchemy so early …

'And now I am going to die …' He couldn't hold the bitterness away as it swept thru him bringing with it the cold hand of fear gripping his heart. 'But if I am going to descend into the coldness of Nothing that is death then you _will_ go with me, TOM!'

With an internal snarl of anger he drow the fear away and focused on his slipping magic. He pushed it and enhanced his right arm that was still cowered by the cloak with the technic known as Fortitude that allowed him to move now almost dead body with magic but made him unable to cast it with the said arm.

But that was quite OK, as what he planned didn't require him to use any magic … just strong, nimble fingers.

Harry moved his arm to his belt where a pouch was located near his pants right pocket (he was quite grateful that he landed on his left side now) and reached inside. With three first fingers (his pinky and ring fingers hold the wand) he took out a single marble-sized stone ball. Harry moved it to the nook of his index finger carefully but with some difficulty as his wand was making it a bit awkward. Thankfully the Idiot was so close that he didn't have to aim much, so when he felt ready, and his strength slipping he launched the ball at Voldemort with a flick of his thumb.

The edge of the Invisibility Cloak made almost no obstacle for the ball as it reached the Dark Lord with lightning speed and stricken him right in the centre of a chest after burning a hole in his black Robe. The ball (with a bearly visible web of tiny glowing runes on it) then just fell down to the floor with a clunk and crumbled to dust.

Voldemort abruptly stopped his gloating (something about skinning his mudblood friends) and stood in a flash, clutching his chest (which now contained tiny black mark) with terror. He knew what this marble did. Harry used it enough on his pathetic followers for him to know.

That was an enchanted granite marble with his unique brand of the withering curse. Set to activate as soon it touched anyone else but him.

Oh … it had its flaws of course. Even a light armour could stop it as it needed a direct skin contact to work, and the "burning thru" function only worked on a small amount of cloth.

But Tommy didn't wear armour. His Dark Ritual enhanced abilities and security provided by his Horcruxes made it superfluous. Besides, he preferred the light robe with only the necessary enchantments because it not only made him devilishly quick but also made a statement – even with simple (but still _acromantula silk_ of course) robe, no one can as much as touch the Dark Lord!

Well … the vanity of the Tosser was his undoing, so he wasn't going to complain.

But he wasn't done just yet. He wanted the arsehole to suffer … to know he was dying. That in mind Harry gathered the appropriate memories and looked with an inhuman effort at the now apoplectic with rage Voldemort. He didn't even feel his body anymore, and he knew that he had seconds of both consciousness and life left.

That and … well … Voldy was pointing his (as in Harry's) wand at him. So he quickly gathered the very last of his magic and thrust a _Legilimency_ probe right into the panicked and furious mind of Tom Riddle.

He showed the memories of him and Hermione destroying the Horcruxes, taking unholy amounts of satisfaction when showing him as his _best friend ever_ destroyed the locked and the diadem. Making him realise how someone Tom thought beneath him made him mortal again, it was fucking _hilarious_ to Harry. Finishing with the recap of him killing Nagini before he got nailed with AK in the Forest Harry felt his magic slipping entirely, and the probe broke.

The inhuman screech reached his fading hearing, filled with fury and terror.

Ohhh … how sweet it sounded to his ears!

If he could, he would be cracking in glee. But the last thing he saw, before eyesight failed him as well, was a wave of familiar shapes of the sentient flame engulfing him from his own wand wielded by his enemy.

Fiendfyre.

Surprisingly he didn't even feel the pain as the flames consumed him, just a vague sense of warmth. But attributed it to the fact that he was now basically dead with few final sparks of thought left in him.

As he felt his psyche collapsing the final and quite surprising thoughts reached him, the feelings and desires he hid so thoroughly he didn't even realise he had them.

A burning _need_ for an equal engulfed him, for someone who understood him fully and even then … after seeing all the darkest parts … still wanted him. Loved him. Someone who he could love with the same intensity.

In the supernova of those last feelings, Harry Potter thought his last.

'If only I could …'

And Harry died.

Crumbling to ashes on the floor of the Great Hall of Hogwarts.

And Death Eaters watched horrified as Tom Marvolo Riddle begged them to save him from the cold and empty embrace of beyond, laying in his piss and shate. The curse then reached his heart, and he died too.

As pathetic as he was in life.

No one noticed as the Deathly Hallows finally succumbed to the Fiendfyre crumbling to the ashes along with their master.

Nor did they saw the soft grey glow they emitted as it was drowned in the bright light of the hungry flames.

oOo

Rose Potter was … well … for the lack of a better word … depressed.

Just over a month ago she was forced to watch Wormtail kill Cedric (her secret crush) right in front of her. And she couldn't do a single thing to stop him. Before she even registered what was happening Cedric was already dead, and a Stunner was just connecting with her body.

Drowning wave of guilt shoot through her.

She _knew_ that it was her fault, she should have done something. Anything! Yet all she did was just standing there and watch it happen.

Her tears become unbidden as she remembered his face as the curse hit him, the face she saw _every night_ since the Third Task. The confused and slightly scared expression and then momentary surprise as the Killing Curse struck him.

And those haunting hollow and lifeless eyes. Blaming Rose for her lack of action … her weakness.

And it only got worse from there. Not only Rose had to see her friend die but, after waking up tied to the statue of some angel with rope, she was also forced to witness the resurrection of her longtime nemesis.

Rose started to breathe deeply trying to push the memory away. It was enough that it was hunting her in her dreams. No point in relieving in during the day. She pushed herself from the bed that she was laying on, put her glasses on and ventured to the bathroom, somewhat happy that she could enjoy the house (and nice long shower) without the Dursleys that used the sunny Sunday for the all-day family outing.

It goes without saying that she was left "home" with a ton of chores to do.

Rose entered the bathroom and tightly closed the door with a lock. Now secured she took off her glasses, oversized t-shirt (that doubled as her nightdress), and her Gryffindor red-and-gold knickers that she purchased in Hogsmead. Practically everything but her underwear was second hand with few exceptions (her Yule dress for example), and she made sure that Aunt Petunia knew nothing about the new clothes.

Morgana knows what she would do if she knew.

Just as she was about to enter the shower, she caught herself in the mirror. Rose couldn't help but wince at her appearance. Her body was sickly thin and unhealthy pale … mostly from lack of eating and spending most of her time in a dark room depressed. And while she had a nice figure with C cup breasts (thirty inches) and lovely hourglass shape with wide hips, the effect was now significantly distorted due to her sickly look.

And yet … even if she couldn't bring herself to care that much about her appearance … she decided that she probably should start eating better. Hermione would hang her from the Astronomy Tower if she knew that Rose is practically starving herself.

That settled in her mind, she pushed her (five foot five inches tall) body to the shower. Relaxing and a _long_ one.

xXx

Rose finally ended all of her chores but one, so to not waste time she headed to the back of the house. After a quick snack (a sandwich) and a glass of water, she headed outside.

Her last task was to weed out the backyard flower garden.

She got to her knees in her work pants (that was slightly too large, and with tearing that had nothing to do with fashion) and dull brown blouse with short sleeves. She put her messy shoulder length raven black hair in a ponytail with a red strap and got to work, beginning with the petunias …

Merlin, she hated those flowers.

Not ten minutes after, when the clock in the kitchen struck ten pm with a dull chime, there a familiar sound of the apparition that she estimated was from the front of the house.

Rose stiffened instantly but didn't panic. She was hearing those cracks of apparition from the moment she returned to her own personal hell. In fact, The-Girl-Who-Lived suspected that her "watchers" were sent by the Headmaster considering an overheard whispered conversation between two people. Two _invisible_ people.

Apparently, they forgot that she had her own Invisibility Cloak.

Unfortunately, she didn't learn much, only that they were guarding her and had scheduled for the constant watch. And something about an Order.

She was crept out enough by the constant watch.

'Didn't anyone tell the Headmaster that constant surveillance of a teenage girl is immensely creepy? Especially without the knowledge of said girl?' Rose thought dryly as she felt strong alcohol and tobacco smell from a nearby tree. She groaned at that softly. 'Great … the smelly guy again. If it is as the usual, he will start snoring in twenty minutes. I feel safer already!'

As if on the clock, twenty minutes later she heard a soft snore. Right annoyed at the whole situation, she detected the source of the snores and feel out the person. As she finally got him (she was reasonably sure it was he – mostly by "manly" smell), Rose lifted the Guard cloak and took his appearance.

She didn't have much chance to do that as a strong smell she could detect from half a mile hit her like a truck. The only thing she noticed about the man was that he was unshaven, ugly as sin, and passed out.

Rose deduced that a bottle of Firewhiskey that roll out from the cloak, as she put it down as it was, had something to do with it. The young woman just shook her head in disgust and returned to her work.

xXx

About an hour later, when she was finishing with the chore, and already contemplating what to do with the free time she heard something strange.

Rose stopped her work and curiously looked around as she tried to pinpoint the source of the strange sound. She couldn't even identify what the sound was … it was almost as if it was on the verge of her hearing, she knew that there was something there but nothing besides it.

Just as she was about to go back to work in her frustration, she noticed the likely source.

The small but steadily growing … _something_ was located in the middle of the backyard. Thankfully the hedges around Dursleys house were high enough to ensure privacy. So she tentatively got closer but stopped herself about sixteen feet from the now faster growing … _light_?

About a foot in the air in front of her was something she could only describe as a dense solid light. It was now a size of a football and still growing. She noticed that it was shining in the soft dark-grey hue, thankfully it was not intensive enough for her to warrant shielding her eyes.

As Rose watched the light grow even bigger she thought furiously what to do … on the one hand, she knew that she supposed to inform someone of this immediately, not only that but getting the hell out of here would be the sanest approach. But she couldn't shake the feeling that this is not some magical bomb or whatnot but a … well … something safe and friendly.

Or maybe this was a trick, and she was supposed to feel like that and then be blown up by this light.

Before Rose could decide something concrete, she noticed that the light had acquired a familiar shape. A distinct form of a human. He, because she somehow could tell that it was an HE, was laying on his left side facing her. The light started to get more intense as the shape become more and more human … and with a final burst of light that she had to shield her eyes from – it was over.

Rose blinked a few times to get rid of the shapes flying in front of her and when finally she was able to see once again her sight concentrated on the form in the middle of her relatives backyard.

She gasped in shock and embarrassment as she noticed that the man … and it was _definitely a MAN_ … was completely naked. Not only that but the more _significant male bits_ were clearly on display.

Rose was frozen in place as she took in the form of the stranger, she couldn't help herself and admired a magnificent specimen of a male gender … a very first she saw naked. She forced her sight to travel to his chest and noticed a multitude of faint scars … and deliciously broad shoulders, toned muscles clearly visible thru his skin and a very unique tattoo in the middle of his chest.

That's when her hormones-filled brain registered something that she should have noticed first.

That man was _clearly_ not breathing.

As if being heard the man suddenly gasped hungrily for air and rolled on his stomach, weakly getting to his knees with his hands still on the ground. She would have helped, or even over an apology for shamelessly ogling (even if it was he that appeared in her relatives backyard), but unfortunately, her attention was caught by something else.

'Oh … Dear Circe …' Rose thought taking in the view of now fully on display, dangling hypnotizingly, a very delicious looking _member_ of the man that was now calming from his … whatever …

She felt a heat spread from her abdomen in a very sensual way … Slowly, moving through her body, the heat reached her chest. Rose felt her nipples harden, her breath took up, and she knew that she was beet red. Not to mention her _very_ moist knickers.

She fought with every ounce of self-control the desire to just get to him and grab it …

"I'm alive …" A sudden rough and disbelieving voice of her guest reached her, snapping Rose from her lust-filled haze. "I am fucking ALIVE!"

The man almost shouted at his last words, immense relief evident in his voice, but what followed took her attention once again.

The man stood up (in a fluid motion) with closed eyes and the most pleased and relaxed expression she ever saw on anyone … and she finally realised as she took his appearance that he was so eerily familiar … that she knew his face … that …

Then it hit her, that was a front of James Potter, her …

But before she could build a coherent thought the stranger opened his eyes and looked around, his eyes landed on hers as she sat but sixteen foot from him at the ground. And Emerald eyes met another set of the same colour.

'The same, not only colour … those eyes are mine!' Rose thought with shock as she saw the strangers eyes, _her eyes_ , widen.

As if driven by instinct both sets of eyes flickered, to their respective foreheads and she saw what should be impossible … The same scar that she had.

The stranger then closed his eyes for a few seconds, and before she could react, he opened them again, after breathing few times to calm himself – at least that what she thought.

"Eh … I read too many books Hermione forced on me to not see where this is going." The stranger said surprisingly calmly startling her as he mentioned her best friend. She managed to notice that he had a deep and smooth voice that she found incredibly sexy. "Am I correct to assume you are Miss Potter?"

The stranger asked with a healthy dose of humour as if already knowing an answer, she absentmindedly noticed that he didn't look bothered … in the slightest … by his nakedness. She wasn't going to complain either, but she was still confused about what is going on.

"Y-Yes. But who are you?" Rose managed to respond to the stranger, that she started to suspect of being … 'No! It cant be THAT!'… But he was at the very least a Potter … Why appear now?

"I am very pleased to meet you, Miss Potter." Said the man with a roguish grin and then let out a small chuckle. "Damn I never thought I would be able to say that … well, not so soon at least. But where are my manners! My name is Harry James Potter, at your service."

Harry, as she now knew his name, smiled at her pleasantly and before she could ask him more questions (like why is he revealing himself now?), he looked around and frowned.

"I see you still live with Dursleys - if you want I can help you on that front … I think. I need a solid plan first on how to deal with this new situation. And will have to learn where exactly I am on the timeline. If my world was even similar enough for my knowledge to be useful …" Harry mused to himself as she still recovered from the shock she received when he offered his help with her Dursley situation.

"But first things first … I will go to Dudley's room … If he even exists here …" At her uncertain nod prompted by his questioning gaze he continued. "Good, I will get me some clothes as I don't fancy getting around au naturel all day and then we can talk about what is going on, are you okay with this?"

She nodded again and cursed herself silently at the pang of disappointment she felt.

'Get hold of yourself Rose! He is, obviously, family! You are not a Malfoy so stop thinking like that about him.' She berated herself internally, but her resolve all but broke as she saw Harry wink at her and nonchalantly walking into the house. Rose noted that he has a very nice ass. 'Ugh … Why he had to be so … so … _good looking_!'

"Se you in your room!" Harry called to her as she tried, unsuccessfully, to get her mind out of the gutter.

xXx

Rose sat on her bed, sweating proverbial buckets, as she thought furiously what she was supposed to in such situation. From the sounds of a rushing water, she guessed that Harry decided to take a shower so that at least gave her a little bit of time to think.

She somehow knew that Harry wouldn't hurt her, it was like a strong gut feeling – and she learned to trust those.

'Should I tell someone about him?' She asked herself, thinking about the question. 'But if I do that … I may never see him again. But Professor Dumbledore would probably want to interview him.'

She grimaced at that herself, Rose knows exactly how demanding of answers the Old Headmaster can be …

'Maybe Hermione?' She mused and almost immediately come to a conclusion. 'She would worry that he is some DE in disguise and tell Professor … eh … I love Hermione, but she is just too rule-abiding for her own good.'

'Um … I won't even consider Ginny or Ron. They wouldn't be able to keep it from Mrs Weasley, and she would flip and assume the worst.' She grimaced at the imaginary reaction to Harry from her honorary mother figure … the least said the better.

'Sirius and Remus are also out, they wouldn't be able to see it from my point of view. Besides, I shouldn't make any decisions until I talk with Harry … At least I will have some grasp of the situation then.' At the rudimentary non-decision made she calmed down a little when another issue hit her.

She will be with him alone in the same room for a while. Witch both excited her immensely … he was really handsome after all … and terrified her – he was a family, and she was behaving like a lovestruck girl.

On that note … was it really normal to think that someone that looked like a carbon copy of her father (but younger) was incredibly delicious looking?

For her defence … she saw him naked. At least it is an excuse for her feelings – a temporary hormonal response to a _HOT_ member of the opposite gender. Hermione would say something along this line.

She hoped.

Rose heard Harry stopping the water and prepared for him mentally. That when she realised that she still didn't change her soaked knickers.

'This will make things awkward.' Rose thought just as Harry came in. 'For me that is …'

He was wearing a black pair of Dudley's denim shorts with a belt (obviously) which didn't look half bad on him … definitely better than on her cousin. It also showed his strong, toned legs nicely. On his feet, he had simple flip-flops that she saw in Dudley's room but never actually seen him wearing them. When she eyed his torso though, expecting oversized t-shirt, she saw his chiselled muscles and him curiously tracing with his right index finger on that strange triangle-like symbol in the middle of his chest.

Adding to the effect was his glistening with moisture skin and damp shoulder length hair so similar to her own. In her humble opinion, he wear them much better than she ever could. She spied a t-shirt clasped in his left hand.

She suddenly was glad that she didn't bother with the new knickers. The way this sight made her feel it would be a waste anyway.

'Ughhh ... Dammit, Harry! I am bearly restraining myself from doing something I will not regret in the slightest … And I probably should.' She growled internally, but externally just licked her lips. 'That guy must be doing this on purpose … no one is that dense!'

Rose internally complained to herself while watching Harry like a hawk as he came closer and surprisingly sat next to her left shoulder. _On her bed_.

Her mind was already providing her with an image of what he looks like without the shorts.

"I find myself surprised to see that your room is almost identical to mine at the Dursleys … To be honest, I expected more girly look. That said Aunt Petunia probably told you not to _desecrate_ the precious bedroom of the Dursley household with the freakishness … just as she told me. So I shouldn't be surprised after all." He murmured to her distractedly as he still examined his tattoo.

"How do you know that?" She asked, already suspecting the answer to the question. After all, she read some of the books from her Hermione too. She just didn't want to believe such an answer.

At least her musings distracted her from his musky smell mixed with her strawberry shampoo.

"I think you already suspecting the answer Miss Potter." He stopped fingering (no pun intended – but a lovely image non the less) his tattoo and looked at her with a soft smile. "My parents were James and Lily Potter, they died protecting me from Voldy, and then he came for me - that's how I got the scar. I spent the next ten years with the Dursleys beaten, starved, unwanted, unloved – basically a slave. Then I got the letter from Hogwarts, and I came to find my real home. At the first year was Cerberus, Troll, finding a friend for life and stopping Quirrell from taking the stone. The second year was the Heir business and battling the Basilisk. Ah! .. and saving young Ginny. The third year was Sirius escaping and Wormtail running to his master. The Fourth was the Tournament … Need I go longer? Oh, and I would appreciate if you gave me a full name. Calling you Miss Potter seems silly after a while." Harry smiled at her kindly and gave her time to process what he told her.

Rose closed her eyes to hide the depth of her emotions from Harry, now that she knew he was an equivalent to a brother. She couldn't help but feel deep regret that she felt such attraction to someone who will most likely never return it. She was hanging before on a little hope that he was some long lost cousin or something.

It turns out that he is her equivalent from another universe, and now that he came here, she just knew that he won't let her do this alone. Because she would do the same in his place.

Well … he is basically her … just hotter.

But there was also overwhelming relief … she now had a family, in just under an hour he trumped Sirius down a peg in her list of people closest to her. Not only that, he was someone who understood what she had to go through.

And she believed every single word he said. She knew that logically all of this may be one big pail of shate, but she _knew_ with every fibre of her body that he spoke the truth.

Afterall she saw him appear in a ball of Arcane light.

But the deepest thing she felt was fear … that he will be repulsed by her. Because just as she knew he told her the truth … she knew that this attraction will not disappear. She had sneaky suspicion that there is a mysterious magical reason to it. Because she doubted that she would behave in such a way normally. And the moment she landed her eyes on him her insides literally came on fire.

Yep … definitely not a typical reaction to meeting your male version.

Damn that Potter luck.

'I wonder if that means that I'm just really narcissistic?' Rose thought humorously and finally opened her eyes.

She then smiled back at Harry, who was eyeing her with slight worry, but still a smile on his face. She then blushed slightly when she remembered his request … she completely forgot to introduce herself.

"My name is Rose, Harry. Rose Lily Potter. Sorry, that …" He waved off her apology for her lack of manners with a grin.

"Don't worry about that Rose … Can I call you Rose?" At her silent nod, he smiled wider with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I would forget my name too if I was in your place … I mean, it's definitely a rare sight when an entirely naked, and different gender, version of yourself appears in your relatives backyard. I would probably faint from all this _excitement_ if it were you that appeared in front of me."

She felt a blush grew on her face at that. Harry, seeing her reaction, just chuckled … and then became suddenly grave before she could say something back at him.

"I wanted to apologise for my sudden arrival, but truthfully … I didn't have any control whatsoever over what happened. You see … I appeared here right after … _dying_ … in my original word." She gasped at that and looked at him in shock, he just shrugged at her and then answered her unasked question. "Believe me, I haven't the foggiest what happened … although I suspect it had something to do with me holding all three of the Hallows at the time of my death."

She looked at him with wide eyes and felt VERY grateful that he somehow didn't just _die_ … and instead materialised in front of her. She didn't know what the Hallows were, but the most burning question had nothing to do with them.

"How … how did you die?" Rose asked tentatively hoping that he won't take offence to that. She had a suspicion that he might have been killed by someone she feared would someday kill her too.

"Voldemort killed me in a duel after I finally made him mortal again." He confirmed her suspicion which made her blood run cold, but before she could say anything (mortal again?) his face transformed.

Where just second ago sadness and regret were visible alongside genuine fear, now was a feral grin. Harry's eyes become cold with steel like gleam, and his whole body radiated smugness as he spoke again with satisfaction heavy in his voice.

"But I didn't die without dragging dear old Tommy with me, and he, _unfortunately_ , didn't have the benefit of being Master of Death at the time. And I made sure he knew that he was dying for good. His reaction to finding out that little tidbit was simply _hilarious_." Harry chuckled at that darkly sending a cold shiver down her spine.

She suddenly felt both sorry for whoever Harry considered an enemy and relieved that she didn't belong to that category … it sounded that this Potter had a far deadlier side than she had. And Rose genuinely didn't know what to think about that.

"But don't worry Rose, I will do everything in my power to make sure that you will not have to die to off Tom." Harry smiled at her after the dark look vanished from his face. She felt a great feeling of relief and gratitude at that – she was right, he will not let her do this on her own.

"Thank you Harry, but … you already defeated your Voldemort … I don't know how to feel about dragging you into my fight. And why would you help me so much after just meeting me?" She knew the answer to that question … she would do the same in his place. But she wanted to hear him saying this, reassuring her that this is actually real. That she was not alone anymore.

"I was in your situation Rose, I really do know what you feel … overwhelmed, scared shitless and fearful of the future. Not to mention alone … even with Hermione at your side." He smiled wistfully at the mention of her … his friend as she saw pain and regret in his eyes. "I always wanted to have someone who understood … _equal_ … who didn't pity me or tried to protect me without telling me what the hell is going on. Without manipulating me." Harry then looked at her with determination written on his face. "No one like that came for me, but I have a chance to be that someone to you. The closest for me was Hermione, but even she didn't fully understand … mostly because I didn't tell her. I felt ashamed of what I had to go through with the Dursleys and because of the bullying at school … didn't want to burden her. And after experiencing what I have in my first world, I will be damned to let you go through it alone, or at all if I have something to say about that. I know that you are not really family, we are practically strangers, but it feels like that to me … different world or not I will not abandon my family to be the plaything of fate."

Rose couldn't hold it anymore and launched herself at him, locking him in a hug and burying her face in his chest, bearly remembering to be careful about her glasses. She felt tears falling from her eyes as the feelings overwhelmed her. Surprisingly he didn't stiffen, she knew she would in his place … at least for anyone else, and returned the hug whispering to her calmingly.

She had her answer, he really did understand. Even with a considerable ping of regret at the fact that he saw her only as a sister, Rose was glad that he saw her as a family. It was almost too much that she suddenly got herself a family member (she refused to call him a brother) out of thin air, Rose felt scared that he was just a dream.

"Now that we established that I will help you, I need some reference to know where we are in regards to the overall situation. I assume, judging by your age, that it's after the Tournament?" Harry said to her as she calmed down and reluctantly let him go and took off her glasses to clean the smudges and tears with the hem of her blouse. His hugs felt simply amazing … especially with him being shirtless.

"Um … Rose? Are you with me?" Harry startled her out of her thoughts and made her blush as she put back on the now clean glasses. Then she remembered his question, and the warm fuzzy feeling left her replaced by a cold wave of guilt.

She _completely_ forgot about Cedric after meeting Harry.

Her face must have shown her internal turmoil because she felt Harry squeezing her left hand reassuringly. She smiled weakly at him for that. Rose then squeezed back and was pleasantly surprised when he didn't stop holding her hand.

"Yes Harry, it's after the Tournament. It actually ended about a month ago. From what you said earlier your Tournament was during the fourth year at Hogwarts?" At his nod, she continued. "Well, mine … mine was during the fifth. The debacle with Sirius took two years for me. Because of that, during the fourth year, there were dementors still present at school - and the Tournament was held back … at least that's what Dumbledore said to me when we were discussing the Tournament after my name got out of the Goblet. I guess your Sirius got more proactive than mine." Rose rambled trying to distract herself from a question that she knew will come if his Third Task was anything like hers.

"Cedric?" He asked softly. Rose breath hitched, and she answered him with trembling voice.

"Wormtail k-killed him ... I … I froze … I watched the curse hit him. I just stood there and did nothing as he died in front of me. I … I was _weak,_ and he died because of it!" Rose spat the last bit with self-loathing and guilt as tears yet again fell from her eyes.

Her heart dropped as she felt his hand leave hers, but before she could react - strong arms took her in a hug. Rose melted into his embrace, her forehead resting on his shoulder, and took hold of to him as his voice reached her.

"It was not your fault." He whispered into her ear with conviction. "If you want to blame someone – blame Voldemort, Wormtail, even the organisers of the damn Tournament. But you did NOTHING wrong!"

Harry held her tighter at that, denying her a chance to separate and argue against what he was afraid to believe him, afraid to shed the guild … afraid to face that her fellow champion died for no reason at all. After all, she just stood there and did nothing but watch Cedric die – surely she could have done _something_!

"I faced the same thing you did, I also watched him die – and then wallowed in guilt, beating myself over for not reacting in time … for just allowing him to die. It took me quite some time to finally understand that it was not my fault. Especially with what happened a year later …" His soothing and compassionate voice broke at the last part, and she felt him tremble slightly. But before she could react he continued. "I know it's hard to accept, that his death was just meaningless, senseless act of violence. That you were powerless to help. But ask yourself … what you could have done differently? And did you have any time to do so?"

"I … I could have _pushed_ him aside … maybe even …" Rose whispered to Harry weakly … unsurely.

"… put yourself in front of him, taking the curse." Harry finished for her, correctly guessing her thoughts. "And what would that accomplish exactly? He didn't have the _priori incantatem_ effect to help him escape. He would have died anyway. Rose … think back, _properly_ , to that moment – from the moment you two touched the cup. If you anything like me then you suck at wizarding ways of travel … especially by portkey and floo. The moment you landed - you were feeling nauseous, confused, hurt from the Task and completely disoriented by the new environment. And then you heard _His_ voice …"

"Kill the spare", Rose whispered remembering the moment. Remembering the chilling, hiss like, voice of Voldemort.

"And Wormtail did. That _filthy rat_ killed him, too quick for you to even recover from the shock of hearing Tom's voice. And even if you didn't freeze up … there still wouldn't be enough time to do anything. Believe me … I replayed that memory thousand times - both in my dreams and while awake. There was nothing you could do Rose."

His voice was so confident, _so sure_ , that she was having a hard time not believing his every word. And he was right about how she felt after the portkey travel, she was so confused … and when Voldemort spoke …

Rose shuddered in Harry's embrace at the memory.

"But … but I could have just taken the cup by myself!" She argued, her guilt too ingrained to give up easily. Harry then surprised her by snorting mirthlessly.

"You know that that wouldn't have worked. You were too noble for that, and Cedric too Hufflepuff to take it himself when you insisted that he should have it. The moment you two got to the cup, it was pretty much guaranteed that you would make it to the graveyard together." He then chuckled sadly at that and murmured something about a 'snake with a lion heart' and 'stupid badgers'. "Face it, Rose … Face it just like I did. _It was not your fault_! You did NOTHING wrong."

His smooth voice full of conviction sounded in her ear. A steady, reliable and unyielding … Harry's voice cut right through her guild and finally reached her. And she couldn't help herself …

Rose believed him.

An all-encompassing feeling of lightness filled her when she let go of the guilt, followed by an overwhelming wave of relief that made her cry once again. She was shocked how much lighter she felt, how much weight left her shoulders at this simple admission … even Voldemort and the upcoming war he was sure to start couldn't faze her now.

Because she now had a partner, _an equal_ , to stand beside her. Someone who understood her … who knew what to tell her to make her feel better.

For the first time, she understood what it is to have the support of a family. What Hermione, Ron and Ginny had all along, and she could only watch from the sidelines up till now.

Rose hugged Harry tighter and put her head in the nook of his neck as she melted completely into his embrace, savouring the feeling of warmth from his body. The safety of his strong frame and rock hard muscles.

In his arms, she felt at home … _safe_. For the first time in her life.

Right now even the homey feel of Hogwarts could not rival Harry's embrace. If she could, she would never let go.

"Alright there Rosy?" Harry asked softly as they finally separated, she flushed red at the nickname and shyly nodded avoiding his eyes. "Well … from that reaction I gather that I managed, _at last_ , to get through that thick skull of yours and made you understand it was not your fault. Am I correct?"

She smiled sheepishly at him calling her thick … Hermione called her that sometimes – especially when it came to feelings.

"Yes, Harry … thank you. I … I really needed that … and … no one spoke to me about what happened besides Hermione and the Headmaster … and you know …" Rose tried to word her feelings and was failing miserably when he cut her off.

"Heh … Hermione tried to force you to talk it out when you were not ready. With the best intentions of course … but, bless her soul, she is almost as socially impaired as we are." He said with a light tone and roll of his eyes at the mention of Hermione's behaviour. Which perfectly summed up her response. She tried to ignore the warm feeling when he spoke of them both as 'we'. "And Headmaster … he just wanted a recap of what happened, offered his condolences at the death of Cedric, and then left you alone. And on top of that, you were forced to once again go to the Dursleys … which could only make you feel worse. So yes Rosy, I do know."

His tone was hard as he spoke about the Headmaster but not hostile, so she figured that there was some bad blood between the two … well … at least his version of the Professor and him. She smiled at him when he called her 'Rosy' again and felt her heartbeat go faster.

She never had an affectionate nickname before. Hermione was not the type … and hated to be called anything else but her name … and the rest of her friends just called her Rose. She found herself really liking it when he called her 'Rosy'.

"Ok … Now that we have _that_ sorted out, time to think about what to do from now. If it's after the Tournament, then that means that the Order is sniffing around." He had a concern etching his face at the mention of the Order, and she could see he was worried. "I don't know if the guard in place seen me 'arrive' but considering that no one came for me I am hopeful that I somehow …" Harry trailed off when he spied her growing grin.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about the Order's 'guard'", she said the last part condescendingly - using her hands to form air quotes. "He is fast asleep. I noticed the so-called Order some time ago and learned that they are watching me non-stop while invisible. I assumed that they were ordered to do so by the Headmaster – considering as they are not trying to kill or kidnap me. I still think they are very creepy though."

Rose puffed with pride at her achievement under the impressed look from Harry. Who chuckled at that.

"I am impressed, I never noticed them myself … but to my defence, I spend most of my time in my room during that summer." He smiled at her and continued. "From what you told me I guess that I just lucked out and got here when Dung had his shift. The smelly guy that likes to drink on the job." He elaborated at her questioning look. When she heard the description, she confirmed his suspicion. "Right … that's good. Gives us some wiggle time for making the decision on what to do. Any idea on when his shift is over? And when will Dursleys come back?"

"Um … from what I gather they have five-hour shifts …" She spied the wind-up alarm clock on her bedside table to check the time. "He came at ten, and it is just after noon, so about three hours left until the guard change. And Dursleys left for all-day family outing … so they will be back sometime in the evening."

"That give us three solid hours to make a decision then. And let me tell you right now … I don't fancy the Order and Dumbledore to know who I am. And by the end of those three hours, I _will_ leave this house." Rose felt her heart drop when she heard that followed by an ice-cold feeling radiating from her chest. She should have known that he wouldn't want to stay with her, the Dursleys were enough to make that impossible …

"So the question is – do you want to go with me? I know that Headmaster put a hold on any information about what is going on and the letters you received were bare of any details. I will help you with that and additionally help you train for what is going to come. I already lived through the war and know, more or less, what to expect and considering that I'm two years older than you and of Potter blood, I _might_ be able to act as a Head of House Potter … if I can spin that angle. Which will give us some freedom from meddling Headmasters."

Rose launched herself and crushed, or at least tried to, Harry in an Hermione-like hug. She had a broad smile on her face, the warmth returning to her twofold … 'He wants me to go with him!'

"Heh … I gather that that's a 'yes' then?" Harry asked with an amused smile and continued when Rose nodded rapidly at him after realising him from a hug. "Good … Now I have a place in mind that is relatively safe and in an emergency would allow us to escape undetected. But I want to make sure that you want to do this … Dursleys may no longer shield you from Tom, due to your blood in his veins, but anyone else would be repelled. And it will take me some time before I will be able to ward the new place to an adequate strength. We will be in danger for a while."

Rose had already made her decision but thought over what he said. She acknowledged that there will be a risk involved but the idea of being here without Harry almost physically hurt her. Rose knew that this _thing_ she felt for him will make her miserable if she was away from him … so there was no doubt in her mind what she wanted.

Besides screw Dumbledore and his information ban, she knew that Harry spoke the truth about that because her letters were so barren of anything useful. Let them stew in ignorance for a change.

"I'm with you, Harry. But … what about school? I would rather go back to Hogwarts after the summer vacation …" Rose spoke to Harry, happily conveying that she will go with him, but traded off after mentioning Hogwarts. A sudden realisation hit her like a train – he was two years older!

He won't be coming to Hogwarts with her.

"Oh don't worry about that you will go to school just fine. Additionally, If I accomplish what I'm planning to do without a hitch, I will be able to go with you to Hogwarts … as the seventh year – but still. Hopefully, I will manage to forge a new identity by the end of summer." Harry blew her worries away as soon as she realised the problem making her sag in relief.

"Ok … enough talking – time to act. I guess your trunk is in the cupboard?" Harry asked and after her confirmation continued. "Good, I will go and … release it … from the blasted place. While I do that you pack anything you want to take, maybe change clothes to something more comfortable or even take a shower … I am relatively sure the place I have in mind will have one in working condition … If not it may take me a few days to fix that. So it is better to prepare for that." Harry stood up, and she followed him. He then moved to the door and just before exiting he turned to her. "I will be waiting for you in the kitchen. I am kinda famished … so I will make something quick to eat. If you are lucky maybe I will leave you some."

Harry then exit the room with a grin on his face and left her alone. She smiled at the thought of eating something he made and started to pack her possessions. She found an old backpack that thankfully was big enough to carry everything she wanted to take.

xXx

After packing and a long shower Rose donned her best looking dark green sundress - sleeveless and collarless with a wide neckline and thin shoulder straps that go to her knees … It looked almost new, aside from a rather visible repair on the stitching near her left breast.

She decided to wear her only strapless bra (present from Hermione in her fifth year) with the dress, lovely white lacy knickers and comfy black ballet flats. Everything but underwear was second hand, but it looked reasonably well … and Rose hoped Harry will like how she looks.

She put her hair back in a ponytail with a red strap and made sure her glasses weren't skewed. Ready to leave she grabbed her backpack and wand (just to be safe - it was in her hand) and headed downstairs.

She quickly found herself near the front door where the stairs ended and moved in the direction of the kitchen. On her way there she saw the familiar cupboard dors removed from its hinges and lying on the floor in the living room. Rose blinked at that and tried to figure out how Harry had accomplished this, that on mind she entered the kitchen.

Harry was sitting at the dinner table and happily savouring a plate of bacon and scrambled eggs that he apparently had made. Regretfully she noticed that he put on a slightly too large black t-shirt. She then saw what was obviously her plate and sat down in front of him.

As she did so, he looked at her and Rose was immensely satisfied that apparently, he liked what he saw. Harry's cheeks reddened a little, and his eyes flicked to her breasts, but he quickly schooled his expression and smiled at her.

All the while Rose was cheering internally that maybe … just maybe … he didn't see her only as a sister figure. He was showing signs that he saw her as a woman.

"You look beautiful Rosy." Harry complimented her suddenly, and she felt herself blush brightly. "I have to say that I would be surprisingly hot as a woman. Who knew?" He said to her with a teasing smile and a mysterious gleam in his eyes.

Rose smiled at him for the compliment and felt her cheeks grew even hotter.

'He called me hot!' She squealed internally and congratulated herself for her chosen attire. 'Maybe this will be easier than I thought … if he is flirting with me, then he must be interested … Right?'

"Now eat up Rosy. After dinner, we go to the park, and I will apparate us to the location I have in mind. That will give us about two hours before there is any chance anyone will notice you are gone. If we are lucky, Moody will not be the next guard. He would find out immediately that you are not in the house. Damn his annoying eye …" Rose shuddered at that thought, there was a rumour when he was a teacher at Hogwarts that his eye could see through clothes. It was even more disturbing now that she knew him to be one of her watchers. "If he is not the next guard … The chances are that your disappearance will not be noticed till evening or even tomorrow. That will depend on how the Dursleys will react. If I had to guess … they will not care till it is time for your to make breakfast."

"Yes … that would be my guess as well." Rose smiled at Harry and added. "And considering that I already did my chores, I doubt that they will even look to my room until morning." She then realised that there is a major flaw in her reasoning and her smile fell. "Or at least it would be that way if _someone_ didn't rip the cupboard door and decorated the living room with it."

Rose glared mockingly at him, and he just shrug at her and smiled lightly with a satisfied expression.

"Oh well … evening it is. It a small price to pay for destroying that door … always wanted to do that. Now tuck in!" Harry spoke and returned to finish his dinner. Shrugging she followed his example.

xXx

"Where is Hedwig?" Harry asked noticing the lack of owl cage as they stood next to the front door after eating dinner. She looked at him and shrugged.

"Probably with Sirius, not too long ago I send him a letter demanding any information about what is going on … and she still hasn't returned. So I am not too worried about her." Rose explained eyeing him from his left side as he nonchalantly carried her trunk on his right shoulder as if it was featherlight. "You are pretty strong." She blurted out and grew red, he just smirked at her.

"Trade secret my dear. Be a good girl, and I will teach you." He quipped and exited the Dursleys residence with her in tow. She was both embarrassed and pleased that he called her 'dear'.

They checked before leaving if Dung was still sleeping, thankfully he was, so they were safe to go out. Just as they reached the footpath and steered in the direction of the park (that was about half a mile away), she spoke to Harry.

"Um … hope you don't mind, but I left a letter to Hermione on the desk in my room. Didn't want to cause her too much distress. But don't worry … I only mention you as a 'friend' I will be staying at." Rose explained quickly hoping he doesn't get mad, but also knowing he probably won't … seeing as he is her male version.

The whole situation was very confusing even without strong, mysterious and romantic attraction in the mix.

"That is quite alright, would have done the same." Harry chuckled at that, probably thinking about their unique situation. "Hopefully she won't skin you alive for 'behaving foolishly' when you meet her on the train."

Rose paled at that slightly. She knew that this was a distinct possibility … or at least a long and bashfull grilling about doing potentially lethally dangerous things. Like running away from a safe place … relatively speaking … with what was basically a complete stranger.

She would have to prepare a good argument for that. A really … REALLY good one.

They reminded silent until the park, which was thankfully relatively empty. Harry took her right hand in his left (prompting her to flush red) and dragged her to a secluded location. After he confirmed that they were alone, he turned to her.

"Ok Rosy, did you ever side-apparated with anyone?" He asked her quietly. Rose shook her head negatively and absentmindedly laced her fingers with his. "Well, I will not lie to you … not the nicest sensation in the world. It will feel like you are being squished and dragged through a small tube. After the apparition ends, you will feel nauseous and disoriented so remember to take deep breaths and no sudden movements till the feeling pass. Do you understand?"

Rose that finally realised that she laced her fingers with his, and more importantly – he didn't seem to mind … was a little distracted. So she nodded at him and marvelled at the feeling of his strong and callused hand holding her own.

"Well, no point in waiting then. Hold on tight Rosy." Harry said, looked around one last time, and squeezed her hand tighter. She did the same to him and tried to prepare for what was about to happen.

Harry then twisted slightly and with a feeling of enormous pressure and being sucked through a _tiny_ tube they disappeared with a soft crack.

oOo

A/N: First chapter of Love after Death (LaD) finished! Hope you liked it!

Now for some bad news …

My main story will still be Violent Attraction (VA), and I will, hopefully, update it soon. This story tho will be updated much less frequently and with the somewhat random schedule. Sorry about that. Until VA is finished, it will remain like that.

Hope you will review and follow. Till next time. Bye!


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